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Department of English

Minors

Students majoring in other fields, especially the professional schools, often speak of the ways that literary studies and writing have helped them encounter themselves—their past and their dreams—and discover the power and passion of their self-expression.

There are two minors offered by the English department: English or Narrative Structure.

English Minor

The English minor requires 5 courses (20 units). At least 4 courses (16 units) must be unique to the minor (that is, not used to count toward any other requirements such as GE or major).

Students who began the minor before Fall 2023 may be following the old minor requirements.

  • Complete this course before enrolling in any upper-division (300-level or above) courses for the minor.

    • ENGL-240 “Literary Arts”

  • Choose one course focusing on literature written before 1800.

    • ENGL-200g “Introduction to Colonialism/Postcolonialism”
    • ENGL-261g “English Literature to 1800”
    • ENGL-325g “Pre-Modern Wonders: Magic, Monsters and Marvels”
    • ENGL-420 “English Literature of the Middle Ages (1100–1500)”
    • ENGL-421 “English Literature of the 16th Century”
    • ENGL-422 “English Literature of the 17th Century”
    • ENGL-430 “Shakespeare”
    • ENGL-440 “American Literature to 1865”
    • ENGL-461 “English Drama to 1800”
    • ENGL-465 “The English Novel to 1800”

  • Choose one course focusing on literature written from 1800 to the present.

    • ENGL-262g “English Literature since 1800”
    • ENGL-263g “American Literature”
    • ENGL-333g “Literature of Gandhi’s India”
    • ENGL-424 “English Literature of the Romantic Age (1780–1832)”
    • ENGL-425 “English Literature of the Victorian Age (1832–1890)”
    • ENGL-426 “Modern English Literature (1890–1945)”
    • ENGL-441 “American Literature, 1865 to 1920”
    • ENGL-442 “American Literature, 1920 to the Present”
    • ENGL-462 “British and American Drama 1800–1950”
    • ENGL-466 “The 19th Century English Novel”

  • Choose one course exploring interpretive lenses.

    • ENGL-270g “Studying Narrative”
    • ENGL-280g “Introduction to Narrative Medicine”
    • ENGL-290 “Cultural Studies: Theories and Methods”
    • ENGL-297g “Introduction to the Genre of Nonfiction”
    • ENGL-298g “Introduction to the Genre of Fiction”
    • ENGL-299g “Introduction to the Genre of Poetry”
    • ENGL-341 “Women in English Literature before 1800”
    • ENGL-342g “Women in English and American Literature after 1800”
    • ENGL-343 “Images of Women in Contemporary Culture”
    • ENGL-344g “Sexual/Textual Diversity”
    • ENGL-351 “Periods and Genres in American Literature”
    • ENGL-363g “Contemporary Drama”
    • ENGL-371g “Literary Genres and Film”
    • ENGL-372 “Literature and Related Arts”
    • ENGL-373g “Literature and Society”
    • ENGL-374 “Literature, Nationality and Otherness”
    • ENGL-375 “Science Fiction”
    • ENGL-376g “Comics and Graphic Novels”
    • ENGL-381 “Narrative Forms in Literature and Film”
    • ENGL-392 “Visual and Popular Culture”
    • ENGL-444 “Native American Literature”
    • ENGL-445 “The Literatures of America: Cross-Cultural Perspectives”
    • ENGL-446 “Contemporary African American Literature”
    • ENGL-447 “African-American Narrative”
    • ENGL-448 “Chicano and Latino Literature”

  • Choose one upper-division (300-level or above) English (ENGL) elective based on your interests.

English Minor Worksheet

Narrative Structure Minor

The Narrative Structure minor requires 5 courses (20 units). At least 4 courses (16 units) must be unique to the minor (that is, not used to count toward any other requirements such as GE or major).

  • Choose one course from this list based on your interests before enrolling any upper-division (300-level and above) courses for the minor.

    • COLT-101gp “Masterpieces and Masterminds: Literature and Thought”
    • COLT-264gp “Asian Aesthetic and Literary Traditions”
    • CTCS-190g “Introduction to Cinema”
    • CTCS-200g “History of the International Cinema I”
    • CTCS-201 “History of the International Cinema II”
    • CTIN-190 “Introduction to Interactive Entertainment”
    • EALC-125g “Introduction to Contemporary East Asian Cinema and Culture”
    • ENGL-105x “Creative Writing for Non-Majors”
    • ENGL-262g “English Literature since 1800”
    • ENGL-263g “American Literature”

  • Complete this required course.

    • ENGL-302 “Writing Narrative”

  • Choose one course from this list based on your interests.

    • ANTH-365 “Life History in Anthropological Perspective”
    • ANTH-372 “Interpretation of Myth and Narrative”
    • COLT-375 “Latin American Cultural and Literary Theory”
    • COLT-382gw “Zen and Daoism in Asian Literature”
    • EALC-332 “Modern Korean Literature in Translation”
    • EALC-333g “Introduction to Korean Film”
    • EALC-342gp “Japanese Literature and Culture”
    • EALC-354g “Modern Chinese Literature in Translation”
    • EALC-358g “Transnational Chinese Literature and Culture”
    • EALC-380 “Cultural Topics in East Asian Literature”
    • EALC-385 “Myth, Folklore, and Fantasy in Japanese Literature and Film”
    • EALC-428 “Nature and the Ecological Imagination in Japanese Literature”
    • EALC-452 “Chinese Fiction”
    • EALC-455 “Japanese Fiction”
    • ENGL-333g “Literature of Gandhi’s India”
    • ENGL-444 “Native American Literature Units”
    • ENGL-445 “The Literatures of America: Cross-Cultural Perspectives”
    • ENGL-450 “Caribbean Literature”
    • FREN-375gw “Global Narratives of Illness and Disability”
    • MDES-343g “Modern Arab Culture and Literature”
    • SPAN-380g “Literature of Mexico”

  • Choose one course from this list based on your interests.

    • AMST-301gp “America, the Frontier, and the New West”
    • AMST-378 “Introduction to Asian American History”
    • AMST-385 “African American Culture and Society”
    • CLAS-325 “Ancient Epic”
    • COLT-312 “Heroes, Myths and Legends in Literature and the Arts”
    • COLT-324 “Women in Medieval and Renaissance Europe”
    • COLT-345 “Realist Fiction”
    • COLT-374g “Women Writers in Europe and America”
    • COLT-472 “Los Angeles Crime Fiction”
    • COLT-475 “Politics and the Novel”
    • COLT-476 “Narrative and the Law”
    • ENGL-351 “Periods and Genres in American Literature”
    • ENGL-352g “Bookpacking”
    • ENGL-361g “Contemporary Prose”
    • ENGL-364 “The Modern Novel”
    • ENGL-372 “Literature and Related Arts”
    • ENGL-375 “Science Fiction”
    • ENGL-422 “English Literature of the 17th Century”
    • ENGL-425 “English Literature of the Victorian Age (1832–1890)”
    • ENGL-426 “Modern English Literature (1890–1945)”
    • ENGL-440 “American Literature to 1865”
    • ENGL-441 “American Literature, 1865 to 1920”
    • ENGL-442 “American Literature, 1920 to the Present”
    • ENGL-447 “African-American Narrative”
    • ENGL-461 “English Drama to 1800”
    • ENGL-465 “The English Novel to 1800”
    • ENGL-466 “The 19th Century English Novel”
    • FREN-383 “French Women Writers”
    • FREN-404 “Studies in an Author”
    • GERM-340 “German Prose Fiction from Goethe to Thomas Mann”
    • GERM-372g “Literature and Culture in Berlin in the 1920”
    • ITAL-350g “Gender and Sexuality in Renaissance Italy”
    • ITAL-381 “Storytelling in the Italian Tradition”
    • SLL -302g “Modern Russian Literature”
    • SLL -303 “Contemporary Russian Literature”
    • SLL -344g “Tolstoy: Writer and Moralist”
    • SLL -345g “Literature and Philosophy: Dostoevsky”
    • SLL -348g “The Novels of Vladimir Nabokov”
    • SPAN-304 “The Art of Fiction”
    • SPAN-372 “Modern and Contemporary Latin American Fiction”

  • Choose one course from this list based on your interests.

    • AMST-325gw “The Middle East in Hollywood”
    • ANTH-263g “Exploring Culture through Film”
    • CLAS-337gp “Ancient Drama”
    • COLT-373 “Literature and Film”
    • CTCS-367 “Global Media”
    • CTCS-392 “History of American Cinema to 1960”
    • CTCS-393 “Topics in Historical Cinema and Media”
    • CTCS-394 “History of American Cinema since 1960”
    • CTCS-407 “African American Cinema”
    • CTWR-409 “Fundamentals of Screenwriting: Character, Conflict and Story”
    • ENGL-363g “Contemporary Drama”
    • ENGL-371g “Literary Genres and Film”
    • ENGL-381 “Narrative Forms in Literature and Film”
    • ENGL-430 “Shakespeare”
    • FREN-320g “The French New Wave and its Legacy”
    • GERM-360g “20th Century German Prose: Text and Films”
    • ITAL-360g “Italian Cinema”
    • SLL -346 “Russian Drama and the Western Tradition”
    • SPAN-301 “Introduction to Literature and Film”
    • SPAN-302 “Screen Cultures: From Film to the Internet”
    • SPAN-306 “Performance from Street to Stage”
Narrative Structure Minor Worksheet

Eligibility

To add a minor in English or Narrative Structure, you must: 

  • Be a currently enrolled undergraduate student at USC 
  • Have a declared major 
  • Be in good academic standing 

Declare a Minor

To add a minor in English or Narrative Structure: 

  1. Review the requirements for the major you plan to declare (English or Narrative Structure). 
  2. Meet with a staff advisor in the English department (by appointment or drop-in). 
  3. To make an appointment, use Advise USC. You will need to be referred by your current advisor or email english@usc.edu to be referred.
  4. When you meet with an English advisor, they will help you determine if the minor will fit within your course plan as well as answer any questions you may have about the minor requirements. If it does, they will help you declare the minor. 

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